Werner & Mertz

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Werner & Mertz GmbH

logo
legal form GmbH
founding 1867
Seat Mainz-Neustadt , Germany
management Reinhard Schneider
Number of employees 1050 (worldwide) (2019)
sales € 455 million (2019)
Branch Chemical industry
Website www.werner-mertz.de

The Werner & Mertz GmbH is a family-run medium-sized manufacturer of cleaning and maintenance products headquartered in Mainz . The company goes back to the wax factory "Gebrüder Werner" founded in 1867 . Werner & Mertz has been selling shoe polish under the Erdal brand since 1901 . After the Second World War, the range was expanded to include household cleaners . The top-selling brand is Frosch , which has been selling ecological household cleaners since 1986. Werner & Mertz positions itself with its brands (in addition to Frosch, these are Erdal, tana professional, green care professional, Rorax, Emsal and Bionicdry) and entrepreneurial and social action as an environmentally conscious and sustainable company on the market. For his efforts to protect the environment, owner Reinhard Schneider received the German Environment Prize in 2019 .

history

Erdal plant in Hallein in the background
The Erdal Tower

Foundation, company locations and management

The company was founded in Mainz in 1867 by the brothers Friedrich Christoph Werner and Georg Werner as the "Gebrüder Werner" wax goods factory. With the entry of the second namesake, Georg Mertz, the factory was given the current name "Werner & Mertz" in 1878. Mertz died in 1887, whereupon his brother-in-law Philipp Adam Schneider took over management of the company with the Werner brothers, which is still in the hands of his descendants to this day.

After Philipp Adam Schneider's death on August 10, 1901, his son Rudolf took over management of the company at the age of 19. From 1903 he managed the company together with his brother Hermann Schneider.

In 1908 a major fire destroyed the factory and residential buildings in Erthalstrasse, and in autumn the new factory buildings in Ingelheimer Aue were moved into. After a fire in 1917, production was continued at the same location in the newly built factory in the summer of 1918. The " Froschturm ", which is still the landmark of the "Erdal" in Mainz, was built in this new building . In 1944, a major attack by Allied bomber groups destroyed 80 percent of the company buildings, but the frog tower remained. On May 3, 1946, Radio Frankfurt reported that the "world-famous Erdal factory" was producing again.

The branch in Hallein , Austria, started production in early 1954. In the same year, Rudolf Schneider left the company management. In 1962, Hermann Schneider handed over management to his son Helmut. The largest investment in the company's history to date was the construction of a modern logistics center with a fully automated high-bay warehouse in Mainz in 1996. In 2000, his son Reinhard took over the management of the company in the fifth generation of Helmut Schneider's three children. In September 2010, the head office moved into an “ energy-plus-balance house ” on Rheinallee in Mainz. In 2019 the new production center "L8" was inaugurated in Mainz. At a cost of 30 million euros, it is the largest single investment in the company's history, according to the company.

"Erdal" shoe polish

Based on its expertise in wax processing, the company developed a new type of wax-based shoe polish in 1901 : the previously available shoe dyes and shine, consisting of sulfur , soot , syrup , molasses and water , tended to have a destructive effect on the leather and did not adhere to the shoes and soiled clothes. Werner & Mertz marketed the shoe polish based on the address in Erthalstrasse under the brand name " Erdal " and first introduced the frog prince as a trademark in 1903.

An exemplary selection of different products from Werner & Mertz

Between 1912 and 1939 the company grew steadily through new shoe care products, expansion of sales and logistics as well as advertising and sales promotion. In 1921, Erdal was the best-selling shoe care product in Germany. At the time, the company employed an estimated 1,200 people. In 1928, the Berlin company Urban & Lemm , which produced the successful Urbin shoe polish, was bought up . In 1939 the workforce grew to around 1,800.

Expansion of the product range

After the Second World War , especially from the 1950s, Werner & Mertz expanded its range to include household cleaners, including for bathrooms and carpets. In 1971, with the establishment of Tana Chemie GmbH, a supplier of cleaning agents for bulk consumers such as restaurants, hospitals, industrial plants and office buildings was added.

In 1986 the company introduced the first phosphate-free household cleaners under the “Frosch” brand . Around 80 products (as of July 2020) are now sold under the ecologically positioned brand.

The Erdal shoe care range has been solvent-free since 1996, and emsal products have contained natural ingredients since 2009. In 2008, the company's annual turnover was 284 million euros, in 2012 it was 305 million euros and in 2015 it was 340 million euros.

Positioning and external presentation

Chronology of the Werner & Mertz Recyclate Initiative (company profile, as of April 2020)

Since the introduction of "Frosch", Werner & Mertz has positioned itself as an environmentally friendly cleaning agent company and, as described above, has refrained from using harmful ingredients in other products. The green care PROFESSIONAL brand, aimed at professional users, also sees itself as a green alternative in its segment. The owner Reinhard Schneider has accelerated the development since he took office in 2000. Under his leadership, an environmental and sustainability management was introduced, since 2003 the production facilities have been certified according to the Eco Management and Audit Scheme (EMAS) of the European Union. The company's new buildings, including the headquarters and the new L8 production center, were planned and built with ecological and sustainable principles in mind. The company bundles its sustainability initiatives under the “Frosch Initiative”.

In 2008, recycled plastic was used in production for the first time; 2012 was the official start of the recyclate initiative. Together with other partners, including the Green Dot , the initiative aims to make more plastic from household waste usable. The initiative promotes a higher recycling rate to protect the climate and the oceans in the public and in politics. The company is also receiving advice from the German Nature Conservation Union as part of the Recyclate Initiative . Since 2010, 80% of the packaging has been made from recycled plastic, initially mainly from plastic bottles. All Frosch brand cleaner bottles are now made from 100 percent recyclable materials. In 2019 Werner & Mertz launched the first shower gel bottle made entirely of recycled plastic from the yellow sack .

The recycling of plastics is a niche business overall as it is more costly compared to making plastic from oil. In 2020, the company was one of the few to stick to the use of recycled plastic when oil prices fell. In guest contributions (for example in Wirtschaftswoche ) and interviews (e.g. with ZDF ), the managing director, Reinhard Schneider, calls for more business involvement in environmental and climate protection.

public perception

Image and appreciation

In the public perception, the ecological profile dominates, especially through the cleaning product brand Frosch (see main article Frosch (brand) # Ecological orientation ). “German Standards - Brands of the Century” from Zeitverlag , for example, sees the Frosch brand as a “sustainability pioneer” and awards the brand as defining for its industry. In the course of its history, the company has received various awards for its activities, primarily environmental awards since the 2000s. The new head office building was initially awarded the environmental prize of the state of Rhineland-Palatinate, and later a LEED certificate of the highest level (“platinum”) for sustainable building was added. In 2019, owner Reinhard Schneider was awarded the German Environment Prize.

Awards and certificates

  • October 23, 1967: Commemorative coin of the city of Mainz "for the loyalty of the company to the Mainz location".
  • 1986: Environmental protection award from the city of Hallein to the Austrian branch.
  • 1991: Awarding of the Austrian national coat of arms to the Austrian branch and appreciation of the company's importance for the state of Salzburg and the city of Hallein.
  • 2002: Werner & Mertz introduces the environmental management system according to DIN EN ISO 14.001 and is EMAS-II certified.
  • 2010: Environment Prize of the State of Rhineland-Palatinate.
  • 2012: LEED Platinum for the head office on Rheinallee
  • 2014: ECR Award for Recyclate Initiative
  • 2014: Packaging award for the company's recyclate initiative
  • 2014: Award for Exemplary Employer Rhineland-Palatinate

Criminal product liability: Leather spray 1980–1988

In 1988 the company and its managers in Germany had to answer for negligent bodily harm and life-threatening health hazards . Managers of the company were accused of not having taken the product off the market in a timely manner or receiving timely warning notices despite knowledge of the health risks posed by a leather spray manufactured by Werner & Mertz and sold through subsidiaries ( Erdal Rex GmbH, Solitär GmbH ) since 1980 to have applied to the products. In the revision of the judgment before the BGH , the responsibility and liability of the managers were confirmed.

See also

Web links

literature

  • Wolfgang Heck: 100 Years of Erdal, 1901–201. Brand quality under the sign of the frog. Edited by Werner & Mertz. Werner & Mertz GmbH, Mainz 2001.
  • Kim & Axel Himer: The big book of leather care. Heel-Verlag, Königswinter 2011. ISBN 978-3-86852-986-9

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Werner & Mertz sales 2012–2020 on de.statista.com, last accessed on June 30, 2020.
  2. ↑ a b c d company chronicle. In: werner-mertz.de. Retrieved June 20, 2020 .
  3. ↑ Bernd Pieper: Clean all along the line ( Memento from May 2, 2007 in the Internet Archive ). In conservation today. No. 3, August 6, 1999.
  4. ↑ a b Largest single investment in the history of Werner & Mertz , press release on werner-mertz.de, published on May 23, 2020, last accessed on June 30, 2020.
  5. ^ German trademark register (DPMA), trademark Froschkönig (1903)
  6. ↑ Erdal buys Urbin. German trust for boot wax. In: Berliner Morgenpost . No. 256 of October 26, 1928.
  7. ↑ Products. In: frosch.de. Retrieved January 7, 2018 .
  8. ^ A b Jens Koenen: Werner & Merz: A frog king in the land of giants. In: handelsblatt.com. Gabor Steingart, November 27, 2009, accessed January 7, 2018 .
  9. ↑ Sustainability Report 2016/2017. S. 5. Werner & Mertz, accessed on August 4, 2014.
  10. ↑ Stein, C .: "The frog makes big leaps", in: Allgemeine Zeitung Mainz, March 14, 2020.
  11. ↑ About us on wmprof.com, last accessed on June 22, 2020.
  12. ↑ Save the climate with circular economy. In: initiative-frosch.de. Retrieved June 20, 2020 .
  13. ↑ Erdal Rex GmbH - Frosch cleaning agents - NABU. Retrieved June 20, 2020 .
  14. ↑ Our Recyclate Initiative , press release on werner-mertz.de of September 9, 2014, last accessed on June 30, 2020.
  15. ↑ Reinhard Schneider: Frosch cleaning agent brand is a pioneer in plastic recycling. Retrieved July 7, 2020 .
  16. ↑ Our Recyclate Initiative , press release on werner-mertz.de of September 9, 2014, last accessed on June 30, 2020.
  17. ↑ Bettina Röttig: Green lighthouse projects. In: Lebensmittel Praxis issue 18/2019, p. 80.
  18. ↑ Helmut Bünder: Cheap oil displaces recycling goods. In: Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung of June 9, 2020, p. 21, online . Last accessed on June 22, 2020.
  19. ↑ Reinhard Schneider: The worst advisor? Discouragement! In: WirtschafsWoche Nr 50, published on November 29, 2019. Last accessed on June 20, 2020
  20. ↑ Christine Elsner: Frosch-Unternehmer: Credibility is the key , published on October 27, 2019 on zdf.de, last accessed on June 20, 2020.
  21. ↑ Frosch on deutsche-standards.de, last accessed on June 20, 2020
  22. ↑ Business and Biodiversity Newsletter November 2009 (archive) .
  23. ↑ Award of the Rhineland-Palatinate Environment Prize 2010 in the economy category ( Memento from December 18, 2010 in the Internet Archive ).
  24. ↑ New headquarters for Werner and Mertz. In: usgbc.org. US Green Building Council, accessed January 7, 2018 .
  25. ↑ At Werner & Mertz, more energy is generated than consumed. In: rhein-zeitung.de. Rhein-Zeitung , September 28, 2012, accessed on January 7, 2018 .
  26. ↑ Broadcast on October 23, 2012: Highest international award for sustainable building. In: swr.de. Südwestrundfunk , October 23, 2012, accessed January 7, 2018 .
  27. ^ The Frosch Recyclate Initiative: The Perfect Cycle. In: holheitlich-nachhaltig.de (archive). Werner & Merz, accessed January 7, 2018 .
  28. ↑ The winners in the corporate cooperation category. In: ecraward.de. Retrieved January 7, 2018 .
  29. ^ Frosch Recyclate Initiative. In: Verpackungspreis.de. German Packaging Institute e. V., accessed on January 7, 2018 .
  30. ↑ Federal Ecodesign Award - Competition - 2014 - Prize Winners (archive). In: bundespreis-ecodesign.de. Internationales Design Zentrum Berlin e. V., accessed on January 7, 2018 .
  31. ↑ Federal Ecodesign Award 2014: The winners have been announced. Federal Environment Agency , November 17, 2014, accessed on January 7, 2018 .
  32. ↑ Economics Minister Lemke honors exemplary employers in Rhineland-Palatinate. MWVLW , November 19, 2014, accessed January 7, 2018 .
  33. ↑ Exemplary employer in Rhineland-Palatinate honored. ISB , November 17, 2014, accessed on January 7, 2018 .
  34. ↑ Mainz entrepreneur receives German Environment Prize. SWR aktuell, September 13, 2019, accessed on September 13, 2019 .
  35. ↑ PROCESSES: Parrot in the Fog . In: Der Spiegel . No. 8 , 1988 ( online ).
  36. ↑ BGHSt 37, 106 - Criminal product liability: Leather spray (Server Uni Bern, CH).

Coordinates: 50 ° 1 ′ 16.3 "  N , 8 ° 14 ′ 43.8"  E